Dancing on the Ceiling

Richie rose to prominence as a member of the Commodores in the late 1970s, but after tensions arose in the band, he left in 1982. His first two solo albums were runaway successes: Lionel Richie (1982) sold 4 million copies, while Can't Slow Down (1983) sold 10 million, and won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.^[3]

Recording for Dancing on the Ceiling began in 1985. "Say You, Say Me" was used in that year's film White Nights for which it had won an Academy Award for Best Original Song and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.^[4] Work on the album was done while Richie was finalizing his work with "We Are the World".^[5]

During early production, the album was intended to be titled Say You, Say Me^[3] and released in December 1985.^[5] However, Richie found that he did not "want to do those songs" owing to the social conditions he saw, and began rewriting it "to express what [he] felt the world was boxing itself into".^[5] Ultimately, the album's title was changed to Dancing on the Ceiling, as the titular song was Richie's next single.^[3] Recording for the album took over a year and a half,^[6] and Richie stated that he tried to include a mixture of sounds.^[5]

More information Review scores, Source ...

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[7]
The Village Voice	B+[8]
The Washington Post	(mixed)[9]

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Dancing on the Ceiling has generally received positive reviews. Anthony Decurtis, reviewing in Rolling Stone, gave the album a positive review, writing that it "sets an impressive standard for mainstream pop craft", encompassing Richie's "finest qualities".^[10] He especially praised the track "Say You, Say Me", but found "Ballerina Girl" a "virtual anthology of Richie's worst saccharine excesses".^[10] Los Angeles Times critic Robert Hilburn found that "We Are the World" had left Richie "with a deeper sense of social purpose, and his attempts to infuse that sense into his traditional approach brings a tension to the new album that makes Dancing on the Ceiling his most satisfying collection."^[11]

Robert Christgau of The Village Voice ranked the album a B+. He found that it provided "lulling, almost mantralike entertainment" with "a knack for tune that puts [Richie] over the fine line between lulling and boring". His criticism centered on "Ballerina" for its mawkishness and lack of interest in some of the faster songs.^[8] Meanwhile, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic retrospectively gave Dancing on the Ceiling four out of five stars, summarizing the album as "a solid, enjoyable affair" but a "comedown" after Richie's previous albums, with its songs generally longer than necessary and the lyrics mixing "silliness ... and sappiness".^[7]

The album sold 4 million copies in the US^[3] and it became the first album to be simultaneously certified gold, platinum, double platinum, and triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America since the institution established double platinum in 1984.^[12] In South Africa, initial shipments were 60,000 prerelease units.^[13] To promote the album Richie went on a 40-city concert tour, entitled "Outrageous". The first concert was in Phoenix, Arizona.^[6]

Dancing on the Ceiling peaked at No.1 on the US Billboard Hot 200. The title track was the album's second biggest single, reaching No.2 in the US and No.7 in the UK Singles Chart, falling behind "Say You, Say Me"'s earlier performance. Other Top 10 singles from the album include "Love Will Conquer All" (US No.9, UK No.45) and "Ballerina Girl" (US No.7, UK No.17). Meanwhile, "Deep River Woman" reached No.10 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles chart.^[14]

Following the success of Dancing on the Ceiling, Richie withdrew almost entirely from the music industry for six years, which Steve Huey of AllMusic suggests was "quitting while he was ahead".^[3] He released a compilation album – with some new material – entitled Back to Front in 1992, with his first all-new release, Louder Than Words, following in 1996. As of 2013^[update], none of his successive albums have been as successful as Lionel Richie, Can't Slow Down, and Dancing on the Ceiling.^[3] A remastered edition of Dancing on the Ceiling was released in 2003, featuring four bonus tracks.

All tracks are written by Lionel Richie, except where noted. All tracks are produced by Lionel Richie and James Anthony Carmichael, except "Night Train (Smooth Alligator)," produced by Narada Michael Walden.

Credits lifted from the album's liner notes.^[15]

Musicians

Background vocals

Hoopa Hollers on "Dancing on the Ceiling":